Dogon village attack: armed assailants kill at least 95 in Mali

It is the latest massacre in an area plagued by an outbreak of ethnic violence since January

The scene shortly after a violent attack by Dogon militia in March that left at least 134 Fulani Muslims dead and dozens more wounded. AP

About 100 people were killed in violence in Mali on Sunday night, local officials said on Monday.

Scores of ethnic Dogons were killed in an attack on a village in central Mali, in the latest massacre in an area plagued by an outbreak of ethnic violence since January.

Armed fighters set fire to the village of Sobane in the central Mopti region, shooting villages as they fled the flames, France 24 reported.

"Armed men, apparently Fulanis, fired at the population and burnt the village," Siriam Kanoute, an official for the nearby town of Bandiagara told Reuters.

Mali's defence ministry said 95 people were killed and they expected the toll to rise, according to the French broadcaster.

It is not clear who carried out the attack. There has been a spate of attacks in Mali in recent months, some of which is inspired by ethnic conflict, others by Islamic militants.

Violence between Dogon hunters and Fulani herders has killed hundreds since the conflict broke out in January as the two groups fight over land and water resources.

In March, more than 150 Fulani Muslims were killed by gunmen in one of Mali's worst acts of violence in its recent history.

The massacre prompted Mali to sack senior officers and dissolve a militia composed of Dogon hunters.

"Malian children are paying a heavy price for the intensification of violence," the UN's children's agency said at the time.

Despite the presence of UN peacekeepers composed largely of French military and a five-nation regional force, the violence persists.